what can we do for you? >> and now, "bbc world news." clerics as colonel gaddafi's troops force rebels from strongholds, as they prepare for a bigger government onslaught. >> america, and nato, france, this is our country. >> there is much diplomatic talk, but no agreement on what to do next. the arab uprising reached the saudi kingdom. we have a special report. welcome to bbc world news.

the pope has been a new book about jesus christ and there are surprising revelations. and we journey to australia to find out why the kangaroo has such a balance in its step. -- such a bounce in its step. in libya, colonel gaddafi's troops are still bombarding rebel-held areas from the air and the ground. one of his sons has said that government forces will unleash a full-scale assault. any international integration -- any international intervention will not be a piece of cake, and will fail. the rebels and those following them are easy targets on an open road in in the desert. this was near the oil camp.

and they weren' forced back. the rebels have gone up and down this road, but to get off the forces have more firepower. -- in the khaddafi forces have more firepower. >> where is everybody? we need more help. >> colonel gaddafi is warplanes and weapons will be decisive if the rebels do not get help from abroad. the regime is suggesting the americans might want to arm the rebels. >> libyan television had what seemed to be an intercepted telephone call, a supposedly between the u.s. ambassador and the rebel general. >> what they could endure others aboard do you need? >> but it -- what equipment or

other support do you need? >> but it was not clear what was being offered. >> you will lose. we will win. america, nato, france, this is our country. we will never, ever surrendered to those terrorists. >> later in tripoli, gadhafi's son called for peace in the the real libya. this was supposed to be libyas future until the rebellion. as far as these people larkin cent, that future has been restored -- these people are concerned, that future has been

restored. it feels like a victory ride. they had a sharper message for the rebels in benghazi, we are coming. >> barack obama's senior intelligence adviser told a senate hearing today that he does expect colonel gaddafi's forces to prevail. the u.s. is in direct contact with libya's opposition. france became the first country to formally recognize that the rebels. although diplomatic activity is intense, it is inconclusive, as we report from brussels. >> this is not be easy revolution world leaders had hoped for. 's hold onddafi to power may be shaky, but it still

holds. there was a warning to libya's leader. >> and the international community and the united nations will not stand idly by if colonel gaddafi continues attacking his people systematically. >> today in paris, the french president became the various world leader to officially recognize the libyan opposition . the french president has also suggested a limited campaign of targeted air strikes, among them the military airfield in the colonel gaddafi tom down, and one at his barracks in tripoli. -- a colonel gaddafi's home

town, and one at his barracks in tripoli. >> i think there is a clear legal basis to do it. there is regional involvement. there is a feeling that if we undertook such a commission and did not have other countries involved with us, that would lead to misinterpretation. >> the overall impression here today is that europe bozo leaders are, on the wall, rather leaders are, on the whole, rather wary. they are nervous about getting drawn into a north african war. president obama oppose the top intelligence adviser has also been making waves, -- president intelligence adviser

has also been making waves. >> a longer-term, the regime will prevail. >> the rebels held funerals today for two fighters. they are desperate for outside military help, but it is not coming yet. matthew prius, bbc news -- matthew price, bbc news, brussels. >> china has posted a surprise deficit of $7.3 trillion. it is the first drop in nearly a year as export prices fell. oil prices are going up.

the italian prime minister has unveiled reforms to the justice system. among them are limitations to prosecutorial powers. critics say he is trying to punish the judiciary. protesters in saudi arabia have taken to the streets before a so-called day of rage. police fired on them using stun guns to disperse the crowd. the saudi authorities placed far in journalists under tight restrictions. -- foreign journalists under tight restrictions. we have this special report. >> saudi arabia tonight, young men run in front of security forces.

this is a town where the shiite minority lives. this is partly about local grievances. for some, the so-called day of rage has already begun. this shia intellectual has a reform agenda. the unrest on the streets has alarmed the government. he stresses he once peaceful change. -- wants peaceful change. >> it has to start somewhere. >> many people do love the king. they worry that democracy will bring conflicts with tribal society. >> our government is the best

government for us and we love it. this is a bad way. we do not like it. >> never get, this is saudi arabia, a country named after one of the family. begunbdallah has some reforms, but this is a place where the government remains very much in control. >> producing a camera on the streets will very quickly bring the attention of the police. the interior ministry has just issued a statement saying that any demonstrations are illegal. everyone already knows that, of course, but the interior ministry has added, rather ominously, that it will take any measures necessary to deal

with public uproar. >> it is not clear if these are live rounds or plastic bullets. this could be teargas or a stun grenade. all of this marks an escalation of the protests in the shi'ite east. the capital is next. bbc news, saudi arabia. >> in yemen, protests have led to a series of political reforms. addressing thousands of supporters, the opposition was invited to join a new unity government. police, firefighters and soldiers have joined an operation to help earthquake victims in southwest china. more than 20 people died and 200 where injured.

the quake struck at lunchtime on a thursday. a man is recovering in a hospital after being bitten by a crocodile. another fisherman intervened, allowing him to escape. today, the dalai lama is giving upon politics. he will begin a formal process of stepping down. he says the move will be for the long term benefit of his people and not because he wants to shared responsibility. -- to shirk responsibility. >> for more than five decades, the people of tibet have looked up to the dalai lama. now he has decided to step aside.

>> since the 1960's i have repeatedly stressed that tibetans need a leader elected freely by the tibetan people to whom i can divulge power. we have clearly reached a time to make this hour. during the next tibetan parliament, i will make a chart for tibetans in exile. >> over the years, the dalai lama has helped to push the cause of a free tibet. not surprisingly, the reaction from china was dismissive. >> he has been expressing his intention to retire.

we think it is a trick to deceive the international community. >> some see this as a decisive shift, making way for a new era, younger leadership, which may be more aggressive in pushing for independence. others believe will lead to a split within the community. people are still coming -- coming to terms with the fact that he may not always be around to guide their destiny. whoever the new leader is will have their work cut out for them. >> stay with us on bbc world. new troops are expected to be ready in afghanistan in just eight weeks. 's broke away from serbia

unilaterally three years ago -- kosovo broke away from serbia unilaterally three years ago. to addressempting day-to-day issues. >> after three years of conflict, this was the first time that syria and kosovo had engaged in face-to-face talks. led by the european union, the hope is that today are moving closer to membership -- the hope is that they are moving closer to membership and make give ground on certain issues. they will skirt around the core issue of independence. serbia says kosovo is still its own province, but those of us as the issue of independence is not negotiable. >> there are some great

proposals from both sides. we will continue working on them and the implementation when the time comes. what i need to say now is that there are some topics on which we are getting closer than some others. >> a first try perhaps to address the practical issues which might have improved the lives of citizens, advance our agenda to the european union. >> so they left, buoyed by a seemingly fruitful burst round, a hugely significant moment for both -- first round, a hugely significant moment for both sides. >> success in this dialogue could help serbia and kosovo leave their troubled past behind and build a road to a european future.

>> the latest headlines this hour. in libya, colonel gaddafi sources seem to be gaining the upper hand -- gaddafi's forces seem to be gaining the upper hand. there is much talk but no agreement on what to do next. france has officially recognized the rebels. in afghanistan, efforts are intensifying to let the country be responsible for its own security. a new afghan army recruits have just eight weeks of training before they face the taliban. will they be ready in time? >> the main recruitment center in publikabul. these afghans have come here to join the army.

almost all say they want to serve the nation. they have to meet certain conditions before joining. first of all, they should be afghan citizens. they should not be disabled so they can put bill their duty. they should not be drug addicts -- fulfill their duty. they should not be drug addicts and should not have committed a crime in the past. >> we will follow them until the end of their training. >> there are 2500 new troops sent from across afghanistan to the recruitment center here. they will go through a to weeks of training until they become soldiers. -- through eight weeks of training until they become soldiers. there are a few challenges ahead of the trainers.

>> now it is time to get measured for boots. recruits have to change out of their own clothes. they have to make sure they have everything they need. their first experience of military life begins, a life very different from the one they had before. 3:30 a.m., they line up to wash. they leave the barracks for the first time that day. instructors give special attention to sports, and exercises that will make the recruits fit for the upcoming tough military training. soldiers and swear to serve the army and the nation.

the government wants to ensure these recruits will be loyal. mighting exercise, unmoving inherited from the -- marching exercise, movement inherited from the soviet army. he has years of experience and is well aware of the challenges ahead in the training. >> we have to have a deadline to have a target number for the army. i hoping -- two months is not enough. i hope it will be four or six months in the future. >> there are learning how to use different types of weapons and the tactics of war. >> pope benedict has published a new book about the life of jesus christ.

in it, he absolves the jews of causing the death of jesus. the bad news has been welcome around the world. -- that news has been welcome around the world. >> already the faithful and the curious are flocking to buy it. >> it is very important for everybody, not only for catholics. >> the vatican critics and sales of more than 1 million copies in seven -- vatican predicts sales of more than 1 million copies in seven languages. >> the holy father underlines it, framing responsibility on the leaders of the time. >> pope benedict started the church as preparations for easter this week. he writes about the life and death of jesus. in a key passage, he says that

jews were not responsible for the conviction of christ. it was the aristocracy of the temple to where to blame, not to the jewish people as -- of the temple who wear to blame, not to the jewish people as a whole. the israeli prime minister, benjamin netanyahu, praised the pope's courage, saying jews had faced centuries of hatred because they were blamed for christ's death. >> after the great crisis which had exploded between the catholic church and the jewish public opinion in the year 2009 when the pope decided to cancel the vacation of the bishops and one of these bishops -- the pope

decided to continue the invocation of these sketches and one of these bishops was a noted anti-semite. -- of these bishops, and one of these bishops was a noted anti- semite. >> pope benedict says jesus himself was not a revolutionary, but used the power of knowledge to heal. it is a message the pontiff now hopes will be transmitted through the power of his riding. -- writing. >> scientists in britain and australia have been working on a way to find out how the kangaroos gets its balancounce. >> why run when you can hop? the kangaroo has intrigued

scientists for decades. what has to articulate baffled experts is why such a large creature can do this without the impact of breaking its bones. researchers using motion capture technology have fited plastics and service -- have outfitted plastic sensors to the kangaroo to record its every ement. other marsupials like these wallabies also moved by hopping, but do not carry anything like the same amount of weight. this could answer some key questions. >> we are interested to see why these larger kangaroos -- why

their muscles aren't breaking, why the attendants are not tendons are notendanc snapping. >> if they succeed, they will be one step closing to solving -- one step closer to solving an evolutionary mystery. >> in libya, colonel gaddafi troops are still bombarding rebel held positions from the air and the ground. one of his sons is heading up a full-scale assault. any international intervention would not be a piece of cake and would fail. senior intelligence advisers told a senate hearing today that gaddafi's forces are expected to prevail in the long term. france became the first country to formally recognize the rebels. we have much more on all of the

international news at bbc.com. thank you for watching. >> hello and welcome. >> see the news unfold, get the top stories from around the globe and click-to-play video reports. go to bbc.com/news to experience the in-depth, expert reporting of "bbc world news" online. >> funding was made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu. newman's own foundation. the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation. and union bank.

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